251.603.  Definitions. — As used in sections 251.600 to 251.630, the following terms shall mean:

  (1)  "Baseline year", the calendar year prior to the effective date of a resolution by the regional economic development district board approving a regional economic development project; provided, however, if economic activity taxes from businesses other than businesses locating in the regional economic development project area decrease in the regional economic development project area in the year following the year in which the resolution approving a regional economic development project is approved by a regional economic development district board, the baseline year may, at the option of the regional economic development district board approving the regional economic development project, be the year following the year of the adoption of the resolution approving the regional economic development project;

  (2)  "Board", a regional economic development district board created under the provisions of section 251.605;

  (3)  "Collecting officer", the officer of the municipality, county, or other taxing jurisdiction responsible for receiving and processing payments in lieu of taxes and economic activity taxes and the officer of the municipality, county, or other taxing jurisdiction responsible for receiving and processing local sales tax revenues collected by the director of revenue on behalf of such municipality, county, or other taxing jurisdiction;

  (4)  "County", any county of the state of Missouri and any city not within a county;

  (5)  "Economic activity taxes", the total additional revenue from taxes which are imposed by a municipality, county, or other taxing districts, and which are generated by economic activities within each regional economic development project area, which exceed the amount of such taxes generated by economic activities within such regional economic development project area in the baseline year; but excluding personal property taxes, taxes imposed on sales or charges for sleeping rooms paid by transient guests of hotels and motels, licenses, fees, special assessments, and any taxes imposed by the municipality, county, or other taxing district after the effective date of a resolution by a regional economic development district board approving a regional economic development project;

  (6)  "Governing body", a legislative body or other authority governing a city, county, or a city not within a county;

  (7)  "Obligations", bonds, loans, debentures, notes, special certificates, or other evidences of indebtedness issued by a regional economic development district, municipality, county, or commission, or other public entity authorized to issue such obligations under the regional economic development district law to carry out a regional economic development project or to refund outstanding obligations;

  (8)  "Payment in lieu of taxes", those revenues from real property in each regional economic development project area, which taxing districts would have received had the regional economic development district not adopted a regional economic development plan and which would result from levies made after the effective date of a resolution of the board approving a regional economic development project during the time the current equalized value of real property in such regional economic development project area exceeds the total equalized value of real property in such regional economic development project area during the baseline year until incremental tax financing for such regional economic development project area expires or is terminated under the provisions of the regional economic development district law;

  (9)  "Regional economic development area", an area designated by a regional economic development district board which shall have the following characteristics:

  (a)  It includes only those parcels of real property directly and substantially benefitted by the proposed regional economic development plan;

  (b)  It will be improved by the regional economic development project;

  (c)  It is contiguous;

  (d)  It is not included in any other redevelopment plan or using any other tax increment financing program; and

  (e)  The board has declared development of the area is not likely to occur without benefit of the proposed regional economic development plan;

  (10)  "Regional economic development district", a district formed by agreement of two or more county or city governing bodies for the purpose of the economic development of such district, the boundaries of which may encompass all or any part of one or more entire counties and all or any part of one or more entire cities;

  (11)  "Regional economic development plan", the comprehensive program of a regional economic development district to improve a regional economic development area, thereby enhancing the tax bases of the taxing districts which extend into the regional economic development area, through the reimbursement, payment, or other financing of regional economic development project costs in accordance with the regional economic development district law.  The regional economic development plan shall conform to the requirements of section 251.621;

  (12)  "Regional economic development project", any regional economic development project within a regional economic development area which constitutes a major initiative in furtherance of the objectives of the regional economic development plan, and any such regional economic development project shall include a legal description of the area selected for such regional economic development project;

  (13)  "Regional economic development project area", the area located within a regional economic development area selected for a regional economic development project;

  (14)  "Regional economic development project costs", costs to the regional economic development plan or a regional economic development project, as applicable, which are expended on public property, buildings, or rights-of-ways for public purposes to provide infrastructure or support for a regional economic development project.  Such costs shall only be allowed as an initial expense which, to be recoverable, shall be included in the costs of a regional economic development plan or regional economic development project, including any amendments thereto adopted by the board of the regional economic development district.  Such infrastructure costs include, but are not limited to, the following:

  (a)  Costs of studies, appraisals, surveys, plans, and specifications;

  (b)  Professional service costs, including, but not limited to, architectural, engineering, legal, marketing, financial, planning, or special services;

  (c)  Property assembly costs, including, but not limited to, acquisition of land and other property, real or personal, or rights or interests therein, demolition of buildings, and the clearing and grading of land;

  (d)  Costs of rehabilitation, reconstruction, repair, or remodeling of existing public buildings and fixtures;

  (e)  Costs of construction of public works or improvements;

  (f)  Financing costs, including, but not limited to, all necessary expenses related to the issuance of obligations issued to finance all or any portion of the infrastructure costs of one or more regional economic development projects, and which may include capitalized interest on any such obligations and reasonable reserves related to any such obligations;

  (g)  All or a portion of a taxing district's capital costs resulting from any regional economic development project necessarily incurred or to be incurred in furtherance of the objectives of the regional economic development plan, to the extent the board by written agreement accepts and approves such infrastructure costs; and

  (h)  Payments to taxing districts on a pro rata basis to partially reimburse taxes diverted by approval of a regional economic development project as approved by the board.  In addition, any revenues of the regional economic development district may be expended on or used to reimburse any reasonable or necessary costs incurred or estimated to be incurred in furtherance of a regional economic development plan or a regional economic development project;

  (15)  "Resolution", a resolution enacted by the regional economic development district board;

  (16)  "Special allocation fund", the fund of the regional economic development district required to be established under section 251.618 which special allocation fund shall contain at least three separate segregated accounts into which payments in lieu of taxes are deposited in one account, economic activity taxes are deposited in a second account, and other revenues, if any, received by the regional economic development district for the purpose of implementing a regional economic development plan or a regional economic development project are deposited in a third account;

  (17)  "Taxing district's capital costs", those costs of taxing districts for capital improvements that are found by the regional economic development district to be necessary and to directly result from a regional economic development project; and

  (18)  "Taxing districts", any political subdivision of this state having the power to levy taxes if the future tax revenues of such district would be affected by the establishment of a regional economic development project.